4 E Ohio St - Tree Studios

Between 1894 and 1913 Judge Lambert Tree and his wife, Anne built Tree Studios as an artists’ colony in the backyard of their Wabash Avenue mansion. Ardent supporters of the arts, the Trees constructed the studios following the 1983 World’s Fair hoping to entice visiting artists to stay. To foster a community environment, contiguous studios featured connecting doors and shared a common courtyard. Over 500 artists from an array of disciplines lived and worked there over time. Famous former residents include actors Peter Falk and Burgess Meredith; J. Allen St. John, illustrator of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Tarzan books; and sculptors Albin Polasek and John Storrs who created the Ceres statue atop the Board of Trade.